Buffy gave him an uncertain look. “I mean, only if you want to, of course. You don’t have to feel like…” She hesitated. “I just thought… since we are dating and everything…” Swallowing, she looked down at her feet. “I think they would really like to meet you.”
“Oh.” Spike nodded in understanding. Of course Buffy’s parents would want to know who their daughter was seeing. It made perfectly sense. But he just wasn’t used to things like this. He had never dated anyone before, and now he realized that he hadn’t even thought about the fact that most people had both a family and friends. Him being the exception, of course. Suddenly he felt really stupid.
Glancing at him, Buffy bit her lip. “If it’s too soon…”
“No.” Spike snapped out of his thoughts and gave her a smile he hoped would be assuring. “Was just a little surprised, is all. I don’t mind. I’d be happy to meet your parents, luv.”
Buffy looked relieved. “Really?” He nodded. “Great!” Now she was beaming at him. “When?”
“Um…” Spike didn’t know what to say. Finally he shrugged. “You decide, pet. Whenever you want is fine with me.”
“Okay.” Buffy thought about it for a moment. “How does tomorrow night sound? You could come over to my house after work and we’ll have dinner.”
Spike shrugged again. “Sure.” Suddenly he couldn’t help but wonder what Buffy had told her parents about him, if anything. He really hoped things wouldn’t be too awkward, knowing that he wasn’t exactly good with other people. The one thing he was good at was pushing them away. Except for Buffy, that was. Maybe her parents would hate him. But this was clearly important to her, so he would go. Like he had said; he would do just about anything for her. And if that included hanging out with her parents, then so be it.
Buffy’s smile had faltered a little at his lack of enthusiasm and she had become very quiet. “Spike, are you sure you’re okay with this?”
He knew then that if he would say no, if he would show even the slightest sign of hesitation, Buffy would call the whole thing off in a heartbeat. And that made him love her even more. For once, he wanted to be the one to do something for her, instead of the other way around. He cupped her cheek and placed a soft kiss on her lips. Then he pulled back, looking her right in the eyes. “I’m sorry, luv. This is just kinda new to me, you know?” She nodded and he went on; “I’m okay with this, Buffy. Really. And tomorrow night’s just fine. I’m looking forward to it.”
She looked at him for a moment, obviously trying to see if he really meant it. Then she seemed to relax a little. “Okay. I’ll call my mom right away.”
The rest of the morning went by quickly. After calling her mother and making arrangements for the following night, Buffy and Spike jumped on his motorcycle and went into town. After spending quite some time looking and trying out different kinds of beds, they finally stopped for lunch at a small restaurant. There they ate in comfortable silence, until suddenly a throat was being cleared next to their table. Looking up, Buffy’s eyes widened a little. “Xander?”
“Hey, Buff!” Xander glanced at Spike, but didn’t include him in the greeting. Next to him was the same guy Buffy had seen him with the nigh before at the pizza place. “You remember Jesse?” Again, he turned to Buffy, ignoring Spike completely.
“Yes, Xander, we met last night.” Buffy felt more than a little annoyed by Xander’s rude behavior. She had really thought they were past this, but it was obvious that he still wouldn't accept her boyfriend. “Do you remember Spike?” She raised a brow, clearly indicating that she knew what he was doing and didn’t like it. After all, Xander had promised to be nice, and last night she had thought he was actually trying. But today, he seemed to have forgotten all about that.
“Sure,” he muttered, nodding briefly at Spike before turning back to his friend. “Come on, man. We better get a table before they all get taken.”
Jesse opened his mouth to say something, clearly a little uncomfortable by the sudden tension, but Buffy beat him to it. “Xander, wait, I wanna talk to you.” Before he could say anything, she hurried to add; “In private.” Then she glanced at Spike to see if he was okay with that, relieved when he nodded and gave her an assuring smile. Standing up, she was a little surprised when he grabbed her arm to prevent her from leaving, pulling her back down to give her a long, deep kiss before letting go, a satisfied look on his face as he glanced at Xander.
Buffy rolled her eyes, but couldn’t keep the amused smile from appearing on her face, knowing all too well that Spike had kissed her like that deliberately to annoy Xander. Not that she was complaining, of course. In fact, for a moment she actually considered climbing onto Spike’s lap and show Xander just how much this guy really meant to her, but quickly decided against it. She didn’t want Spike to think that she was using him in any way. And besides, she wanted to talk to Xander and get it over with as quickly as possible, so she and Spike could leave.
Now she looked at Xander, gesturing for him to follow her outside. He let out a sigh, but obeyed with a nod. As soon as they had stepped outside the restaurant, he turned to Buffy, raising his hands in a defensive manner. “Okay, before you say anything, I didn’t mean…”
Buffy interrupted him before he could finish; “Didn’t mean what, Xander? To act like a complete ass? To embarrass me in front of my boyfriend? To make yourself look like a jerk in front of your friend?” She paused. “I can go on for hours.”
“Right.” Xander looked down at his feet. Then he sighed. “I’m sorry, okay. What do you want me to say? I just don’t like the guy.”
“You don’t even know him!” Buffy glared at him. “We’ve been through this, Xander. I’m in love with Spike and you’ll just have to deal with it.”
“Whoa!” Xander stared at her. “You’re in love with him? When the hell did that happen?”
“That’s not the point.” Buffy glanced through the window, seeing Spike and Jesse still waiting by the table inside. It looked like they were talking, but she couldn’t be sure. She could feel a headache coming up. Why did Xander have to be like this? Why couldn’t he just accept her decision? Suddenly she realized that she didn’t care. She’d had enough. “You know what? Just stay away from me from now on. You’re obviously not my friend anymore. If you were, then you wouldn’t do this to me.”
Xander’s eyes widened. “Wait a minute… Buffy, I…”
“Don’t.” Buffy crossed her arms over her chest. “Spike and I are leaving. Enjoy your lunch.” She turned her back at him and went back into the restaurant, not bothering to hold the door up for him.
For a moment, Xander just stared at the spot Buffy had been, frozen in place. Had he really just lost one of his best friends? He felt a lump forming in his throat and couldn’t help but wonder how everything could go so horribly wrong.
TBC